According to Stellar Industries, the company was the first manufacturer in the crane-body industry to employ the hexagonal boom design on all its service cranes, and models rated at 6,000 pounds and more use all-hydraulic extension. Stellar cranes feature planetary-drive winches that provide line speeds to 60 fpm, "greaseless" bushings for reduced maintenance, 400-degree rotation via worm-gear drive and radio-remote control as standard equipment. Crane bodies, says the company, are built with an isolated crane compartment with a torsion-box understructure. A two-pass priming process completely immerses bodies in "electro-deposition" paint, and Imron 5000 paint is used for the finish coat.
The Maintainer range of service cranes includes models with rated capacities from 2,000 to 14,000 pounds. These models feature hexagonal booms, closed-center load-sensing hydraulics and an internally mounted "overstress" system. Options include a short or tall crane tower and wireless remote control. Among Maintainer's newest crane bodies are the models 6220 and the 6224, both with a 12,000-pound-capacity (62,000-foot-pound) crane and boom lengths, respectively, of 20 and 24 feet.
Stahl manufactures an extensive line of service cranes, both electric and hydraulic, that ranges in foot-pound ratings from 6,000 to 48,000. The company's crane bodies feature an understructure of tubular-steel beams that extends into the right-rear compartment. According to the company, its patent-pending "lock-bolt" mechanical fastening system results in stronger joints than welded seams, eliminates 80 percent of conventional-body welding and provides enhanced corrosion resistance. Body options include an 18-inch-deep workbench style rear bumper, vented tank compartment and a master locking system.
Feterl's service-crane line, used on the company's five basic crane bodies, includes 15 models that range in maximum rated capacity from 6,000 to 14,000 pounds. Body features, according to the company, include heavy-duty 10-gauge construction, sleeved sub-frame, isolated crane tower, pressurized cabinets and a "Gang Lock" system that uses a one lock to secure all the compartments. Feterl's largest body, the model 14000, features 70-inch front cabinets with toolboxes streetside, and a large, vented "oxy/acty" compartment curbside. The deck area, says Feterl, has no wheel wells.
According to Omaha Standard, it offers "the longest limited warranty in the business." The warranty covers rust-through, hinges and latches for six years and all other body components for three years. The company's 8,000-pound crane body features a newly designed under-frame and crane compartment designed to "isolate the crane compartment from the remainder of the body." These bodies, says Omaha Standard, are intended for 2-ton trucks and above with 48-inch-high sidepacks. The bodies use double-panel doors with "rigid honeycomb polystyrene stiffeners" bonded between the panels for increased strength.
Dakota Bodies will engineer "solutions to any type of modification or feature" the customer requires. Standard features for the company's crane bodies include double-panel door construction with intermediate stiffeners, the use of corrosion-resistant steel for critical body areas, stainless-steel door hinges and automotive-type weather stripping. Crane bodies feature a crane box made of 1-inch steel plate and integral, upright steel-tubing beams that work in conjunction with a tubular-steel understructure.
Characterizing the construction of the four-model range of STI crane bodies, says the company, is an integrated crane-support structure that encompasses the body, crane tower, substructure and outriggers. The bodies feature all-welded construction and "Galvaneal cabinet construction." STI's cranes, which range in foot-pound ratings from 6,000 to 62,000, feature a hexagon boom design and double-reduction drive for rotation. "Integrated absolute filtration" of the crane's hydraulic system, says the company, adds to the overall reliability of the product.
Knapheide crane bodies feature the company's "torque-isolator" crane support system. The reinforced crane box, in conjunction with a sub-frame, says the company, "transfers lift forces into the full-length torsion box sub-frame and outriggers — not the side compartments." Knapheide crane bodies also receive the company's "K-Coat" corrosion-protection treatment, which entails a 12-stage process resulting in an electrodeposition prime coat.
IMT says the design for the floor of its crane bodies "maintains a unit weight that is the lightest in the market." The crane-body package features an integrated design (crane, body and air system) that allows doors to open during crane operation. The 15 service crane models also feature a lightweight design, are available with either radio-remote or tethered controls and use a boom-mounted winch. IMT's redesigned Dominator II crane body uses a new "under-deck" 35-gallon hydraulic reservoir, which increases the body's cargo area.
According to Reading, its tubular-steel understructure accommodates the added stress of crane operation and allows its Cranemaster 6000 and 8000 models to support service cranes of those respective capacities. The Cranemaster 6000 is suited to 15,000-pound GVWR vehicles, and the Cranemaster 8000 for 21,000–33,000 GVWR vehicles. Compartment doors are double-panel construction with internal reinforcement and feature a patent-pending, dual-mode sealing system. Other features include bolt-on stainless-steel hinges, a vented oxygen and acetylene compartment and galvanized bumpers.
The 13-model range of Auto Crane service cranes feature full-hydraulic extension, planetary-drive winches (line speeds to 60 fpm), two-speed rotation and an FM remote control and tethered-pendant control as standard. The cranes are manufactured, says the company, with a "pre-paint and assemble" process, and the units carry a two-year warranty. The company's crane bodies feature a patented one-piece side-pack design; internal stainless-steel hinges; and double-panel, flush-mounted doors with radius corners, which, says Auto Crane, are more effective at dispersing stress than 90-degree door corners. And, says the company, its crane bodies allow the crane to work throughout its lifting radius with no need to "de-rate" its capacity.
